Brian and Ronda Mathiowetz stand with members of the NUMAS Haus board and staff in the former First United Methodist sanctuary. The Mathiowetzes recently gave $100,000 to NUMAS Haus in memory of their daughter Stacy, who died of cancer on Christmas Day 2023. L to R: Brian Mathiowetz, John Gag, Ronda Mathiowetz, Tim Knaak, Nicole Schmiesing and Heidi Suess. Ronda Mathiowetz holds a painting by Ken Schilling depicting their daughter Stacy with Jesus Christ. The painting will be displayed in the sanctuary following the completion of renovations.

NEW ULM – In memory of their daughter, Brian and Ronda Mathiowetz donated $100,000 to the New Ulm Ministerial Association Shelter (NUMAS) Haus.

This donation brings NUMAS within $103,000 of their capital campaign to raise $1.062 million to renovate the former First United Methodist Church into additional shelter space.

Brian and Ronda Mathiowetz said the donation to NUMAS was inspired by a need to give back to a community that was supportive of their daughter Stacy Mathiowetz.

Ronda Mathiowetz said their daughter was born with a small part of chromosome 3 deleted in each cell. This left Stacy Mathiowetz legally bind and mute. It is a relatively rare condition and it left no clear path for treatment.

Brian Mathiowetz said they sent Stacy to a State Academy for the blind in Faribault when she was 5. She graduated from the school at age 21 and returned to live in Sleepy Eye.

Brian and Ronda Mathiowetz said at that time, there was no group home in Sleepy Eye. In 2007, they donated funds to construct Hope Home in Sleepy Eye where their daughter lived with other special needs individuals. The group continues to be operated by EON.

In 2023, Stacy Mathiowetz was diagnosed with bile duct cancer. It is an aggressive form of cancer. She died six weeks after receiving the diagnosis on Christmas Day.

Following her death, Brian and Ronda looked for a way to honor her daughter. They wanted to give back to the community, which was very supportive of their daughter.

“It was always fun to go out with her,” Ronda Mathiowetz said. “People who just come up to us and say ‘Hi Stacy.’ They knew her better than us.”

Brian Mathiowetz said Stacy was often in the New Ulm area. She took part in Party in the Park and the Courage Camp events. All of these events were run through the work of volunteers.

Brian Mathiowetz said Stacy had special needs and faced many challenges her whole life and they believed the best way to honor her memory was to look for people who want to support others in challenging situation. This led to them supporting NUMAS Haus.

“We all live in a bubble,” Brian Mathiowetz said “Unless you step out of it, you don’t realize life is tough for a lot of people through no fault of their own. We need to support these people.”

In going through the donation process, the Mathiowetz learned a lot more about NUMAS and how much work the shelter provides the community.

Brian Mathiowetz admitted he was shocked by the amount of people who are assisted by NUMAS.

“Unless you look into it, the problem is invisible,” he said.

Ronda Mathiowetz said she was impressed by NUMAS Haus’ effort to education guests to help them grow and move on with their lives.

“It’s not just a handout,” Ronda Mathiowetz said.

The Mathiowetzes said in the past they had donated anonymously to organizations, but this time they were inspired to do it publicly to raise awareness. The hope is others will do the same.

The money donated by Mathiowetz will help complete the renovation of the former First United Methodist sanctuary space into a recreation room for children staying at the shelter. The room will be named in honor of Stacy Mathiowetz.

NUMAS Haus executive director Nicole Schmeising said with this donation, they are 95% of the way toward funding the three phases of the capital campaign. The three phases included creating extra living spaces, renovating the sanctuary and remodeling rooms into studio apartment.

“We are so blessed and fortunate to have these three phases nearly funded,” Schmeising said. As the capital campaign near a finish, NUMAS will focus on programming and operational expenses, which will be ongoing as the shelter expands.

Schmeising said the donor support for NUMAS continues to be remarkable.

For more information about NUMAS Haus, visit www.numashaus.org